Bill Kubly, golf course builder and chief executive officer of Landscapes Unlimited, has been selected by the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA) as the 2012 Donald Ross Award recipient.
The award will be presented April 29, 2012 during the 66th ASGCA Annual Meeting in Chattanooga, Tenn. The award is named for ASGCA’s first honorary president, and is presented to an individual who has made a positive contribution to golf and golf course architecture.
Kubly is a graduate of the Landscape Architecture program at the University of Wisconsin and began work as a golf course architect in 1971 for Dick Watson. Watson owned a golf construction company and Kubly learned the construction side of golf development on the job. After five years he went out on his own. Landscapes Unlimited, based in Lincoln, Neb., now employs 750 construction workers and another 450 who work at company-owned golf courses.
“To identify Bill as a golf course builder doesn’t begin to describe how involved he is in getting a course from plans to reality,” said President Rick Phelps, ASGCA. “His background as a landscape architect and golf course designer has given him the insight to develop an approach to construction that’s particularly smart and streamlined.
“Bill built a company that covers construction, irrigation, project development and recreational development, so he and his team understand all aspects of how best to develop golf facilities. He brings that big picture expertise to every project and his work style naturally leads to respect and partnership.”
Kubly served as president of the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA) from 1998 – 2000, and is a former Chairman of the Environmental Institute for Golf. He is current President of the GCBAA Foundation where he led growth of the Sticks for Kids Program from 11 programs to 510, and increased the number of industry-related scholarships from five to 47.
The Donald Ross Award was established by the ASGCA Board of Governors in 1976. Its first recipient was one of ASGCA’s Founding Fathers, Robert Trent Jones. ASGCA’s Donald Ross Award Committee is led by Past President Rees Jones, ASGCA.
View a complete listing of past Donald Ross Award recipients.